Thursday, June 05, 2014

Uber in Miami! ... By gimleteye

Shocked! The web based car service, Uber, decided to launch in Miami and not wait around for the unreformable county commission to get around whatever obstacles a couple of very wealthy taxi cab company owners have erected in Uber's way and its competitor, Lyft. Hooray!

The victims is this mess of regulatory capture are Miami cab drivers. They are squeezed, mostly, by the cab company owners. In Miami, with its decrepit cab fleet, this embarrassment is hopefully over.

Uber and its competitor can succeed as they have in other major cities if the Miami Dade county commission and Mayor Gimenez get out of their way. Miami Dade County: get out of the way!

The cabs ARE filthy and the cab drivers ARE crabby because the two cab company owners are greedy SOBs who deserve what's coming: competition in the free market. Agree with g here: county commission, get out of the way!

As someone who just got to Miami, I've been kind of surprised at the level of praise these companies have gotten for their decision to just say 'F it, we're just going to if ignore the rules' I mean, I get it. SOMEONE told the greasy banana republic that's the MD County Commission to go pound sand. Crooked politicians were holding up antiquated regulations mainly to protect their cronies and here comes this new player and gives them a big fat middle finger. Hooray, I guess.

At the same time, you guys do realize you're clapping on behalf of a faceless company that has decided it's just going to break the law because it doesn't like it? You realize the precedent this sets if the gov't doesn't crack down? What if the next whiz bang app to come along is one that connects people to freelance gambling entrepreneurs (a.k.a. illegal card games) who can't be bothered to lobby themselves a casino license? What if the next app connects people to freelance bankers (a.k.a. loan sharks) in an attempt to bypass pesky banking regulations? What if the next app connects people to individuals who will rent their private jet skis for joy rides in manatee sensitive areas, where regulated companies can't go? Will you also be saying "Hooray!"?

One last thought. You correctly note that this development hurts cabbies by adding competition. But there's a more problematic way I see this. Most cabbies here are (or start out as) recent immigrants, which makes sense given how crappy a job it is. If you read today's Herald story with the reporter taking several rides, most of the Uber drivers appear to be creative professionals with some free time. I bet you dollars to donuts the average Uber driver speaks English as a first language and is lighter-skinned than the average cabbie. This is no coincidence. While fair hiring laws can punish cab companies if they say something like "No Haitians, they can't speak English" or "No black people, they scare the tourist", Uber does not have these restrictions since they're not "hiring" anyone. So yes, some of the regulations the new system is pushing away are stupid ones meant to make the cab companies rich. But some of them are meaningful labor protections.

Mr. Melendez makes many excellent points. What is scary is that the discussion and proposed legislation about Uber at the Board of County Commissioners never even made it past the Committee level. I believe it was not even allowed to be brought up at the Committee level. There must be a better system that allows new ideas and new legislation to at least be debated in a proper Commission Meeting? The two owners of the cab companies are too powerful.

In a place where the lifeblood is tourists one would expect a tourist related industry to be calling the shots politically. Plus this is an industry with a long history of sketchy business practices... shitty service, POS cabs and price gouging being their chief claim to fame.

When the crusie ships complained their passengers being "mistreated" by the taxis the industry dug in their heels. The crew ship industry eventually did and run and set up limousine service between the port and the airport. Now tourist don't even get a chance to stop, shop or eat in Miami and the cruise ships fleece them at will. Cruise ships, one cabbies and Miami zero.

As long as the cabs have a monopoly they will maintain the status quo. I can't recall one improvement from zone pricing to air conditioning to credit card machines that haven't had to be mandated by reluctant regulators over the objections of the industry.

Citizens voting with their pocketbook (or in this case an app) is the only real way to counter the political monopoly. Just consider it digital disobedience.

I don't give a shit about the taxi companies, but what abuot the third of the taxi drivers that own their medallions? what about the drivers who already struggle to make their lease payments to the other medallion owners?

they play by the rules - as f-ed up as they may be. why should they have to compete with unlicenesed contractors?

would you celebrate a major corporation hiring a bunch of unlicensed people to start fixing houses in your neighborhood?

Taxi companies don't own their cabs. Nearly all drivers have to bring their own car.

Apparently everyone forgot there was a recession/depression the last 5 years. The taxis were allowed to get older than usual because of that. Since things have improved, nearly the entire fleet is in the process of being replaced with newer cars.

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Quotes hall of fame - worth another look:

Jonathon Dunlop of Australia about the Miami Airport:"This is the most disorganized shambles of an airport that exists on this earth.''April 01, 2007 Eye on Miami Comment on Post__________________________________On "Colony Collapse Disorder":Anonymous said...I say lets wait till the last tree is going to be cut down, the last bit of oil used, the last lowland coastal areas flooded before we make any rash decisions that might effect the economy.April 21, 2007 Eye on Miami Comment_________________________________On Bee “Colony Collapse Disorder” being blamed on cell phones:Anonymous said...Hmmm. What are bees doing with cell phones, anyhow?April 20, 2007 Eye on Miami Comment_________________________________On South Florida Water Supply:Ron Littlepage said...Unfortunately, we know who would win when it comes to allowing development to run amok and it's not the wildlife.April 20, 2007 Eye on Miami Comment Post_________________________________Lesley Blackner said:In Florida, the sad reality is that government exists to serve the development machine, not the citizenry. That's why it's proper to say that in Florida we have government of the developer, by the developer and for the developer.April 22, 2007 Eye on Miami Post_________________________________On City of Miami and Miami Dade County giving $1,000,000 each to Jorge Perez’s Related Group (The Group's 2005 revenues were $3.25 billion.):"It makes as much sense as me donating half my paycheck to Warren Buffett.”May 6, 2007 Miami Herald Columnist Ana Menendez_________________________________On the FCAT Test:"'Florida is a serial mis-user of test scores.''Bob Schaeffer, director for Massachusetts-based FairTest.May 25, 2007 Miami Herald_________________________________Clifford Schulman (Greenberg Traurig Lobbyist):"This is the first time in 33 years that any one has accused me of fraud." June 28, 2007 Miami HeraldI say: hmm.__________________________________Max Rameau, Homeless Activist:"I respect Ron Book for his work with the Homeless Trust, but the Liberty City community and others have given broad support to this idea. I don't know that a big-time millionaire lobbyist can tell us what is best for Liberty City and the black community.'' July 28, 2007 Miami Herald__________________________________"After years of mismanagement under a board of political appointees and neighborhood activists, Miami-Dade County administrators have proposed a new way to run the troubled empowerment zone program. The plan: Bring in new political appointees and neighborhood activists."November 6, 2007 Miami Herald: Reporter Scott Hiaasen______________________________________"Saying "Greater Everglades" and "Northern Everglades" is not saying Everglades -- other places are deserving of being protected too, but there is only one Everglades. The main thing is to keep the 'Main Thing' the main thing -- which, lately, has not been the main thing." Bob Mooney - on Listserve "Everglades Commons"________________________________________"Does anyone in their right mind believe that Florida could conduct postal balloting without a major screw-up or scandal? Heavens, no! The whole country is keenly aware that our state is a sump hole of incompetence and corruption."Carl Hiaasen - March 16, 2008 Miami Herald_______________________________________On the Charter Review: "Commissioners want us to vote on their own pet changes, ideas the review team explicitly rejected. And, they're throwing their blatantly self-serving ballot questions at us at the same time. What a slap in the face to the charter review team — and to all of us!" Michael Lewis of Miami Today - April 10, 2008______________________________________On the Miami Dade County Commission:''Unfortunately, this is a commission that would build a cyanide factory next to a playground if you hired the right 12 lobbyists,'' Miami Lakes Councilman Michael Pizzi - May 14, 2008______________________________________"The days where we’re just building sprawl forever, those days are over. I think that Republicans, Democrats, everybody recognizes that that’s not a smart way to build communities." President Barack Obama in Fort Meyers - February 10, 2009______________________________________"So."Dick Cheney's response when told that two thirds of Americans did not support the war in Iraq. - Time Magazine 2008______________________________________"It seems like a bad idea can always find a home in the Florida Legislature." - Howard Simon - Executive Director of Florida ACLU - March 24, 2010

______________________________________Complete this sentence: South Florida really needs a..."Regional plan for controlled growth (before it becomes a concrete jungle similar to Houston), and a completely new set of elected officials that make decisions based on what's good for the future of South Florida instead of what's good for their wallets. - Jack McCabe, Real Estate expert who predicted the housing boom's end. - August 29, 2011 Miami Herald